Five: Surprises Abound
Damn her and her confounded riddles! Horatio cursed Elizabeth silently, and cursed himself for letting him be so enraptured by her. Nearly ten days at sea, and he still couldn't get her out of his mind. Someone approached him.
"Flagship says for captain to go aboard the Indy, sir." Came the quiet voice of his first lieutenant.
"Very well, Mr Bush. Prepare a jolly." Horatio muttered, looking over the stern of the ship a last time, licking the salty spray from his lips as Bush roared the orders and Horatio went below to collect his papers and the book. He had read it cover to cover several times, and concluded that La Sombra was a mystery yet to be solved. He hated mysteries and seemed confounded by them. He stepped into the jolly, Bush by his side. He watched the Hotspur shrink behind them as they approached the Indefatigable. He boarded to shrill whistles and nods of recognition from several of the crew. Admiral Pellew smiled in welcome, inviting both he and Bush to his cabin. Already there were most of the captains of the fleet, gathered around the desk, peering at a map. Horatio took his place silently as Pellew spoke.
"There are rumours of a massing of Bonaparte's army here and here." He placed his finger on two points of the coast. "The bay here," he shifted his finger, "is ideal for landing but is guarded by two batteries. One is low enough on the cliffs for us to blast it out, but we need the element of surprise. This battery is set up with a signal system that will note our progress before we get within a hundred leagues of the bay." There was silence as Pellew and Horatio shared a look. "We need to take this battery out of action before we can attack the other and take the bay. Once we have the bay, we can take an army across land, here. There's enough woodland to cover us until we reach the encampment. Once the first encampment is taken, we send a signal to the fleet, which moves to this bay, here." He tapped another bay, further south. "We take the second encampment and the fleet picks us up from the bay."
"Sir."
"Yes, Mr Greene."
"How do you propose to get a ship near enough to the battery in the first place?" Pellew paused.
"That is something for the captain to decide, Mr Greene." He twitched a tight smile.
"But sir."
"Mr Hornblower." It sounded as if he had been expecting the young man to speak up. Horatio blushed slightly, but continued.
"Even if we were to take the bay, how many in the encampments?"
"Reports are close on ten thousand." There were mutterings. "But, if we surprise them, as is the intent, we will have no difficulty."
"And the fleet… won't they be spotted in the next bay down?"
"No, Mr Hornblower, they won't." Pellew jabbed a finger at the mark signalling a battery on the cliffs in the second bay. "If you recall, this was the battery you disarmed with the help of La Sombra." Horatio paused, realising it was, and finally understanding that La Sombra had disarmed the battery whilst he had escaped… He felt ashamed, but said nothing, just pursed his lips together and nodded tautly.
"I will attack the first battery, sir." He offered, feeling he had to redeem himself. Pellew seemed to hold his breath, his eyes unreadable.
"Mr Hornblower, I rather think that –"
"With all due respect, sir, I believe that I am the only volunteer." Horatio interrupted, feeling his throat constrict at the blatant disrespect of his admiral. But it couldn't be helped. There was a tense silence. The other captains looked apprehensively at the admiral. Pellew nodded tightly.
"Very well, Mr Hornblower. You shall signal your capture of the battery with two blue flares. You shall then bring your men back to the fleet to mount a proper attack on the other battery. Is that understood?"
"Yessir." Horatio bowed, already his mind travelling to plans whilst the other orders were issued around him. On the boat back to the Hotspur, Bush said nothing, but simply looked at him questioningly. Horatio sighed and stared at his hands. "When I board the ship, Mr Bush, join me in my cabin and we will look at a suitable landing spot for the Hotspur."
"Yessir." Bush looked at the seamen rowing, keeping his thoughts wisely to himself.
They decided on a small cove at the foot of the cliffs along the northern flank of the battery. It was inconspicuous, and they could land up to four boats whilst the sloop staying further out to sea out of sight and out of range of the canons. As dusk fell, brining with it a cloying sea mist, four boats were lowered silently onto the calmed waters. Horatio took the prow in the first, and Bush occupied the second, Midshipman Horak in the third and the trusted Matthews in the fourth. The oars dipped and splashed as they drew between the high walls of the cove, the echo strangely muffled. Four men were left to guard the boats as they were drawn up the sandy beach and the rest of the crew were directed up a narrow path. It looked well-worn, and Horatio hoped that it was a frequented spot for the French, as they would be trapped by the chalky walls of rock and thick shrubs either side of them. As they reached the top of the path, it spread into forest, which seemed to have grown across two slopes that delved into a shallow valley where they emerged. The ground was thick with greenery and the path disappeared from sight. Spreading out, the crew made their way anxiously towards the battery, which loomed low and ominous on the cliff-face. Horatio waved them down, and they crouched low in the undergrowth. The battery was silent. There was no movement to be seen, and he frowned, feeling a sense of foreboding growing in the pit of his stomach.
"Glass." He whispered. Matthews handed it to him, and Horatio aimed it at the building. Nothing. No signs of life. He lowered the glass and looked to Bush, who shrugged.
"We could attack, sir." He suggested. "It would be easy."
"Yes, but it could be a trap." The captain tapped his chin with the barrel of his pistol. "It seems too easy, somehow." Bush used the glass to scan the surrounding area and sighed heavily.
"There are hundreds of place to hide. They could be anywhere." He looked at Horatio helplessly. "If we attack, we could be slaughtered, or we could meet no resistance at all."
"What would you do, William?" The use of his first name indicated the gravity of the situation. Bush thought for a moment. His captain was appealing to him to help – something typically rare from Horatio.
"Me, sir? I couldn't say – it's a cursed predicament." There was more silence – no bird called and no one moved. All were waiting, anticipating something to come, but could not say what. Horatio made to speak again, but was interrupted by a scuffle further down the slope. He readied his pistol and darted down. Styles and Horak were aiming their weapons at five black-clad men. The captain relaxed and smiled as Bush berated Styles in a hissing voice for jeopardising their position. Styles ignored the lieutenant.
"Trying to creep up on us, sir. Shall we kill them?" He announced, glaring at the masked leader. Horatio shook his head.
"As you were Styles. Mr Horak." His men reluctantly lowered their weapons. "La Sombra." He bowed low and the movement was mirrored. There were mutterings from the crew nearest to the gathering. "What can I do for you, sir?"
"You are surrounded by French." La Sombra told him shortly. Bush sighed angrily.
"How did they know we were here?" La Sombra shrugged.
"We can get you out – we've killed the guards blocking the path – but it's not an easy option."
"We have to disable the battery…" Horatio tried not to be captivated by La Sombra's arresting eyes. He was bewildered by what it stirred, and wished for no more mysteries. He looked back up the slope. "If we could get past the French, we could lay the charges before they realised we had gone." La Sombra shook his head vigorously.
"No. the path goes back to the beach. My men and I will deal with the battery again." Horatio bristled with indignation. Bush laid a calming hand on his arm.
"Some of us will accompany you." The lieutenant said placatingly. "The rest will return to the fleet and inform the admiral of the plan." La Sombra hesitated.
"Very well, follow us." He turned to the others and issued rapid instructions in French. Horatio and Bush shared a glance as the guerrilla followers melted into the woods silently and untraceably. Horatio gave orders and slowly the crew began to move down the slope towards the beach. Every now and then, Horatio was sure he saw the silhouettes of the other men around them, but when he looked, they were gone.
Only the occasional snap of a twig marked their presence, and the crew of the Hotspur had almost reached the funnel path to the cove when there was a great shout over the brow of the slope to their left. La Sombra started and looked up, and the men all halted. There were two rapid cracks of musket fire, and La Sombra swore under his breath. He turned to Horatio. Another shot exploded, and the bark from a tree burst open near their heads, and all ducked. The guerrilla leader drew his pistol from his belt and added a twisted smile.
"Choose enough men to set the fuses and send the rest away." He instructed. "Bernard!" A man appeared nearby. "Portez les hommes aux bateaux – voyez qu'ils partent sans risque." The sooty-faced man nodded and took up the head of the file, waving his hand to the crew. Horatio looked at them, bit his lip, and then hissed:
"Matthews, Styles, here. You too, Mr Horak." He looked to his lieutenant. "Coming, Mr Bush?"
"Try to stop me!" Bush grinned. La Sombra nodded quickly.
"Good. Wait here for my signal." Before Horatio could answer, the man darted up the slope and disappeared from sight. More gunshots ricocheted the air, and the five waiting crouched lower to the ground, hoping that the crossfire would not reach them. Silence rang in the dusk, and a masked head peeped over the brow of the hill. A hand joined it and beckoned to them before pressing a finger to his lips. They ran low to the ground, gripping their pistols, and then hunched down next to La Sombra. "There are no more French along this flank, but there are six more on the other hill. Four guards are at the battery, and perhaps there are more inside." He looked at the captain seriously. "Can you do it?"
"Just get me in there, and my men will do the rest." Horatio answered, sounding more confident than he felt. La Sombra nodded, and pointed ahead.
"My men and I will cover you. Head that way and wait in the thorn bush for two whistles. Once you hear it, go in through the door and go to the end of the corridor, where it splits into two. Ahead of you will be two doors. The left door is where they keep their powder. Set your fuses and get out. I will wait no more than two minutes before I go – I cannot risk getting trapped, you understand." Horatio nodded.
"Don't worry, we'll be out in time." La Sombra grinned widely, flashing a set of white teeth.
"I have no doubt. Good luck, sir."
"And to you, sir." They shook hands, the guerrilla having a strong grip for such petite hands. Horatio nodded to the others, and they traversed the pitted undergrowth through the trees. Bush tapped him on the shoulder and pointed as they ran. A man, his face painted black, lay at the foot of a tree, eyes closed and hands crossed on his chest. His black shirt had a wet patch by his heart. He was dead. It must have been the shouts and fighting. They found the thorn bush and settled themselves behind it, in sight of the door to the battery.
There was silence, Horatio staring intently at the door. He could see two guards, and he saw two more stationed further along the walls. He tutted, sucking in his breath sharply, willing La Sombra to hurry. He needn't have worried as two shadows appeared at either end of the wall, sliding along it silently. Two matching blades glinted, raised, slicing through the necks of the outer guards with no sign of a struggle. The two guards by the door didn't flinch, not noticing the silent fall of their comrades. The shadows moved nearer, and Horatio recognised one as La Sombra before the blades were raised again. The movement alerted one of the guards, whose yelp of surprise was cut off by a cut to his neck. The bodies fell to the earth with an audible thud, but no whistle came. Horatio frowned.
"Come on!" He breathed. La Sombra used his pistol to check the other side of the door was bereft of French, and then nodded to his companion, who slipped through the door. "What are they doing?" He exclaimed in a low voice.
"We shouldn't trust –" Bush began, but was stopped by two short whistles in quick succession. La Sombra was waving them across. The men darted over, but before Horatio could question the guerrilla, he was gone, melting away into the undergrowth. The five men entered the battery and quickly found their way to the powder room. They looked on the stacks of barrels in brief awe.
"Shall we set the fuses to these, sir?" Matthews asked carefully. Horatio hesitated.
"No. Take powder each, not a lot, enough to spite the canons, and set them by each canon. We can't risk a huge explosion, else we be seen by the other battery." Matthews nodded and he, Horak and Styles picked up bags of powder, disappearing out the door and heading for the canons. Bush twitched an eyebrow.
"We only have two minutes, sir –"
"I know, Mr Bush. We'll be all right." He smiled, picking up his own bag. "It would be quicker if we helped, though." They ran and started to set the bags to spite the canons, watching Matthews lay the fuses and begin to light them. The first explosion came when they were running back down the corridor. They left the door and ran for cover as the last two canons blew. Horatio checked his pocket watch as they hunched behind the thorn bush again. "Nearly three minutes." He sighed angrily. Suddenly, two hisses announced the release of two blues flares – flying up in a straight line and exploding. The two flares, though, crossed in mid-flight, the black wreaths of smoke billowing in an X shape. Horatio frowned at that, but continued: "We were too long. He won't have waited."
"Oh no?" Bush nodded over his shoulder and Horatio turned to see La Sombra approaching.
"But –" Horatio stood, protesting.
"Perhaps my watch is slow, sir. And I had to leave my mark." The flares… His mysterious smile that accompanied his answer was familiar. Horatio did nothing but smile in reply, allowing La Sombra to indicate their return route to the cove. "My men have dealt with the other French – there are no more of the enemy this side of the bay. There is a boat waiting for you in the cove, may you have a safe journey." He bowed as they reached the path. Horatio returned the gesture. There was a pause, and the guerrilla leader made to leave.
"Just… some questions, sir." The captain said. La Sombra seemed to grimace beneath his mask before his shook his head with fervour, waving his hands to ward away the questions.
"I answer no questions sir."
"Who was the man we saw dead?" Horatio pressed. La Sombra froze, looking stricken.
"A friend, now, please, your boat is waiting."
"And why did you let one of your men into the battery?"
"He had some business of his own to attend to." After he realised that this reply was not enough, he added: "The commander of the battery had disgraced him and his family." He turned away and began to walk up the slope again.
"Will you be at the battle with Bonaparte's armies?" Horatio called and La Sombra laughed.
"Perhaps, if you are in need!"
"And, sir! Are you French?" To this there was no reply, and Horatio shook his head in defeat, following the others down to the bay where one of the boats from the Hotspur sat in the sand, waiting for them to send them back to the fleet to give a report. There had certainly been surprises abound – for both the French and the English.
